Squarepoint Ops LLC Buys 134,949 Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $BCRX

Key Points

• Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its BioCryst Pharmaceuticals stake by 339.4% in the second quarter, buying 134,949 additional shares for a total holding of 174,714 shares valued at approximately $1.75 million.
• BioCryst reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.30 versus estimates of $0.15 and revenue of $218.25 million, up 33.6% year over year. However, the company remains unprofitable, with a negative net margin of 40.90%.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $20.40, compared with shares recently trading at $8.16.

Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX - Free Report) by 339.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 174,714 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 134,949 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.07% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals worth $1,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BCRX. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 1,188.0% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,542 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 3,267 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $52,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $81,000. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth about $98,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $8.16 on Wednesday. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $6.00 and a twelve month high of $11.22. The company has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.44 and a beta of 0.57. The company's 50 day moving average is $9.56 and its 200 day moving average is $9.25.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $218.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $183.28 million. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.90% and a negative return on equity of 86.89%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 33.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on BCRX. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen cut BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. Wedbush cut their target price on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $11.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.40.

About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company that discovers, develops and commercializes orally administered medicines for rare diseases. The company focuses on treatments that address significant unmet medical needs, using expertise in small-molecule drug discovery and development.

BioCryst's primary commercial product is ORLADEYO (berotralstat), an oral, once-daily medication used to prevent hereditary angioedema attacks in adults and pediatric patients ages 12 and older.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.